Seattle daily post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, W.T. [Wash.]) 1881-1888, 1887-05-19
mask TwAIvH THE wAR.
A Battle IN which the Opposing ReFee
was ExterminaIed.


Al Q banQuet Of Union Veterans in
Baltimore recently Mark Twain gave
his ear history ~ follows:
When your secretary invited me TO this
reunion Of the Union Veterans of Mary
land be requested me to come prepared
10 clear up matter which he said had
long been q subject OF dispute and bad
blood Ia war circles Ia this country,
t0-wit; the true dimensions Of my mill
larry services In the civil war, and the
effect which they bad upon the general
result ! recognize the importance OF
this thing 10 history. and have come
prepared. Here are the details. | vas
In the civil war tWs weeks. Ia that brief
time I rose from private 10 second
lieutenant. The monumental feature
Of nv campaign vas the one battle
which my command foughl--it was In
the summer Of 81. II do say 10, il was
the bloodiest battle ever fought in hu-
man hisloFyi there is nothing approach
ing 10 for destruction Of human life in
she field, II you take In consideration
the forces engaged and the proportion
Of death 10 survival. And yet ron do
no. even know the name Of that battle.
Neither dol Ithad a name, bat l have
forgotten II. II IL no use 10 keep private
information which you can't show of.
Now look at the way history does. IL
takes the battle OF Bonneville, fought
near by, about the date Of our slaughter,
and shouts its teeth loose over IL, and
yet never evsn mentions ours; doeen't
even call Il an ''affair," doesn't call IL
anything a. all; never even heard Of It.
whereas, what are the faets7 Why,
these; In the battle Of Bonneville thefe
were 2o00 men engaged on the Union
side, and about as nany on the other
supposed 10 be. The casualties, all told,
we're two men killed; and not all thess
were killed outright, bat only half Of
them, for the other man died in the hos
pital NEXT day. | know that, because
his great uncle vas second cousin to my
grandfather, who spoke three laneasees,
and vas perfectly honorable and up.
right. though be bad warts all over him,
and used to-but never mind about
that, the facts are Just az say, and
can prove 10. Two men killed in that
battle Of Bonneville, that's the whole re-
suls. All the others got avay-on both
sides. Now, then, In our battle there |
were iass hfteen men engaged on eur |
vas q second lieutenant. Do the other |
side there Vas one man. He vas /
stranger. We killed him. II was night, /
and We thought he vas an army Of OBJ /
seFvatioD; be looked like an army Of 4
observation In fact. be looked bigger /
than 30 army of observation Wopld IN 4
The daytime; and some OF as believed be 4
vas tFyiaR 20 Surround ne. and sene 4
thought be wAa going 90 turn eur poeil
lion. and 80 ve shot him. Poor fellow,
be probably wasn't an army Of ohserva-
lion, after all; bat that wasn't our fault;
~ say, be had ali the look Of IL 10 that
diIa light 10 vas q soFrowfnl siFcum-
stance, bat be took she chances OF var
and be drew the wrong ears; be oveFes-
iimatsd bis fighting strength. aud be
Suffered the likely result; bat be fell as
The brave should fAll-With bis faee 20
the front and bis feet 10 the neld-so We
buried him With the honors Of war, aud
look his thinea So began and ended
The ouly battle in the history Of the
world where the opposing force vas ut
teFly sxterminated, swept from the face
Of the earth-to the last man. Aud vet.
you don't even know the name et that
man. Nov, then, for the argument.
seppose I bad eontisaed in the var,
ard gone on ~ tegan. and sXterminat
ed the opposing force every time-eyery
two Sesks-vhere would YOUR war have /
beenf Why, ven see yoarself the eou.
diet would have been too onesided. I
There vas bot one honorable course for /
me 30 parsne. and | pursued il. With |
drew 10 private life, and gave the Unian /
caaso q chance. There. new, yea have
the whole thing In . nutshell: ID wAs not
my presence in The civil war that deter.
mined that tremendous contest--ia vas
my retirement from IL that hronRht the
crash. 70 ieft the Confederate side too
weak .-EnAanee.